Brendan Gleeson | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/brendan-gleeson
Latest news and features from theguardian.com, the world's leading liberal voiceen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2018Thu, 24 May 2018 18:50:56 GMT2018-05-24T18:50:56Zen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2018The Guardianhttps://assets.guim.co.uk/images/guardian-logo-rss.c45beb1bafa34b347ac333af2e6fe23f.pnghttps://www.theguardian.com
On my radar: Brendan Gleeson’s cultural highlightshttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jul/02/on-my-radar-brendan-gleeson-the-revenant-martin-mcdonagh-ry-cooder-flann-o-brien
The star of Hampstead and Alone in Berlin on his Flann O’Brien obsession, the most thrilling piece of theatre he’s ever seen, and discovering Caravaggio<p>Born in Dublin in 1955, Brendan Gleeson worked as a secondary school teacher of Irish and English before turning to acting full-time in 1991. He is best known for his roles in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/apr/13/calvary-review-terrific-black-comedy" title=""><em>Calvary</em></a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/apr/20/thriller.comedy" title=""><em>In Bruges</em></a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/aug/18/the-guard-review" title=""><em>The Guard.</em></a><em> </em>He has also appeared in <em>Braveheart</em>, <em>Cold Mountain</em>, <em>28 Days Later</em>, <em>Gangs of New York</em>, and the Harry Potter films. His portrayal of Winston Churchill in the television film <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/nov/01/into-the-storm-brendan-gleeson" title=""><em>Into the Storm</em></a> won him an Emmy award in 2009, and he has been nominated for three Golden Globes. Two of his four sons, Domhnall and Brian Gleeson, are also actors. Gleeson stars opposite Emma Thompson in <em>Alone in Berlin</em>, based on <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jun/17/hans-fallada-alone-in-berlin-stasi-spies-gestapo-files" title="">Hans Fallada</a>’s second world war novel, and in <em>Hampstead</em>, both out now.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jul/02/on-my-radar-brendan-gleeson-the-revenant-martin-mcdonagh-ry-cooder-flann-o-brien">Continue reading...</a>Brendan GleesonCultureFilmFlann O'BrienBooksMichelangelo Merisi da CaravaggioArt and designRy CooderMusicMartin McDonaghThe RevenantSun, 02 Jul 2017 09:00:24 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jul/02/on-my-radar-brendan-gleeson-the-revenant-martin-mcdonagh-ry-cooder-flann-o-brienPhotograph: Joel Ryan/Invision/APPhotograph: Joel Ryan/Invision/APInterview by Kathryn Bromwich2017-07-02T09:00:24ZAlone in Berlin review – misfiring anti-Nazi dramahttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jul/02/alone-in-berlin-review-misfiring-anti-nazi-drama-brendan-gleeson-daniel-bruhl
Vincent Perez’s film about subversion in wartime Berlin fails to be lifted by Brendan Gleeson’s stoic protagonist<p>Brendan Gleeson offers a stoic performance as Otto Quangel, a German factory worker whose son’s death drives him to drop handwritten postcards with anti-Nazi messages across Berlin, in Vincent Perez’s second world war drama. It’s a small, subversive act, but his hope is that notes reading “Stop the war machine” and “The Führer is a liar” will serve as “sand in the machine”. Soon, police inspector Escherich (Daniel Brühl) investigates the postcards in what he calls Operation Hobgoblin. Visually, it’s tedious, comprising staid, greyish greens. What’s weirder is that the film is in English (though the accents are German), a distancing device&nbsp;that&nbsp;distracts.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jul/02/alone-in-berlin-review-misfiring-anti-nazi-drama-brendan-gleeson-daniel-bruhl">Continue reading...</a>Drama filmsBrendan GleesonEmma ThompsonFilmHans FalladaCultureSun, 02 Jul 2017 07:00:22 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jul/02/alone-in-berlin-review-misfiring-anti-nazi-drama-brendan-gleeson-daniel-bruhlPhotograph: Allstar/PATHE/X-FILME CREATIVE POOLPhotograph: Allstar/PATHE/X-FILME CREATIVE POOLSimran Hans2017-07-02T07:00:22ZAlone in Berlin review – couple wage a quiet war against Hitlerhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/29/alone-in-berlin-review-couple-wage-a-quiet-war-against-hitler
<p>In this affecting drama, Brendan Gleeson and Emma Thompson play a grieving husband and wife who embark on dangerous acts of resistance</p><p>Here is a handsomely produced and solidly acted period drama set in Nazi Germany, based on the postwar novel by Hans Fallada and based on a true-life case.&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/brendan-gleeson">Brendan Gleeson</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/emma-thompson">Emma Thompson</a> play Otto and Anna Quangel, a middle-aged couple in Berlin in 1940. Hating the Nazis and galvanised by grief and rage at the loss of their son in battle, they embark on tiny but very dangerous acts of resistance: leaving anonymous anti-Hitler postcards in stairwells and public places – a capital crime. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/daniel-bruhl">Daniel Brühl</a> plays the police inspector on their trail, using flags on a city map showing the whereabouts of cards handed in to the authorities to calculate where the culprit might live.&nbsp;</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/29/alone-in-berlin-review-couple-wage-a-quiet-war-against-hitler">Continue reading...</a>Period and historical filmsFilmDrama filmsCultureEmma ThompsonDaniel BrühlBrendan GleesonThu, 29 Jun 2017 05:00:14 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/29/alone-in-berlin-review-couple-wage-a-quiet-war-against-hitlerPhotograph: Marcel Hartman/X FilmePhotograph: Marcel Hartman/X FilmePeter Bradshaw2017-06-29T05:00:14ZHampstead review – ghastly faux-mancehttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/25/hampstead-film-review-diane-keaton-brendan-gleeson
Diane Keaton and Brendan Gleeson star as an unlikely couple in this prettified version of a homeless man’s story<p>The real-life story of a homeless man who built a shack on the edge of London’s Hampstead Heath is scrubbed down, disinfected and prettified for mass consumption. This ghastly faux-mance pays lip service to the housing crisis but has as much genuine empathy as someone whose main concern about rising rents is whether it might push up the price of nannies.</p><p>Diane Keaton plays widow Emily, who is struggling to meet the service charges on her portered apartment block. Naturally, having experienced the sharp edge of London’s chronic housing issues, she feels a kinship with Donald (Brendan Gleeson, gruff but cuddly), a tramp who has created an immaculately tended smallholding in the grounds of a disused hospital. This bond boils over into a relationship, once the film has addressed the subject of personal hygiene, the slightly niffy elephant in the room. Emily concedes that Donald is cleaner than she expected. In response, he offers her his armpit to sniff. It passes muster.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/25/hampstead-film-review-diane-keaton-brendan-gleeson">Continue reading...</a>Drama filmsComedy filmsDiane KeatonBrendan GleesonFilmCultureSun, 25 Jun 2017 07:00:23 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/25/hampstead-film-review-diane-keaton-brendan-gleesonPhotograph: Nick WallPhotograph: Nick WallWendy Ide2017-06-25T07:00:23ZHampstead review – Diane Keaton in placid, silver-years Richard Curtis knockoffhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/23/hampstead-review-brendan-gleeson-diane-keaton
<p>Based on a case of a real-life Hampstead Heath squatter, this treacly romcom starring Brendan Gleeson and Diane Keaton lacks Notting Hill sparkle</p><p>More proof that <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/feb/15/love-actually-2-what-should-happen-in-richard-curtis-sequel">Richard Curtis</a>’s style of comedy-drama is very difficult to imitate. This placid, silver-years heartwarmer, set in a picturesque and pricey part of the capital – in this case, Hampstead – is pretty obviously inspired by Curtis’s 1999 hit Notting Hill, though actually taken from the true-life case of Harry Hallowes, a reclusive man who in 2007 claimed squatter’s rights to a patch of ground in Hampstead Heath in London where he’d set up camp and legally saw off some property developers who’d tried to oust him. </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/21/hampstead-london-movie-cliches-notting-hill">From Notting Hill to Hampstead: why do directors get London so wrong?</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/23/hampstead-review-brendan-gleeson-diane-keaton">Continue reading...</a>Romance filmsFilmCultureComedy filmsDrama filmsDiane KeatonBrendan GleesonComedyFri, 23 Jun 2017 05:00:15 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jun/23/hampstead-review-brendan-gleeson-diane-keatonPhotograph: Nick WallPhotograph: Nick WallPeter Bradshaw2017-06-23T05:00:15ZStrange tale of the anti-Nazi bestseller, the Stasi spies and the missing Gestapo fileshttps://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jun/17/hans-fallada-alone-in-berlin-stasi-spies-gestapo-files
<p>As the film of Alone in Berlin opens, German historians say facts were kept out of Hans Fallada’s original novel</p><p>Vincent Pérez’s film <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/feb/07/alone-in-berlin-hans-fellada-vincent-perez-film-nazis-brendan-gleeson-emma-thompson"><em>Alone in Berlin</em></a>, which premieres with a grand live event at the Imperial War Museum in London on 26 June, hopes to be a summer hit in British cinemas. Starring Emma Thompson and Brendan Gleeson, the film tells the story of a working-class German couple who embark on a propaganda campaign against Hitler’s regime after learning of the death of their son.</p><p>Based on the 1947 novel by the German writer Hans Fallada – a surprise bestseller after Penguin commissioned a new translation in 2009 – it has been hailed as a “redemptive” tale and a “story of resistance and hope”.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/feb/15/alone-in-berlin-review-film-festival-nazi-germany-emma-thompson">Alone in Berlin review - postcard revolution in the heart of Nazi Germany</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jun/17/hans-fallada-alone-in-berlin-stasi-spies-gestapo-files">Continue reading...</a>Hans FalladaGermanyDrama filmsSecond world warBrendan GleesonEmma ThompsonFilmCultureEuropeWorld newsBooksSat, 17 Jun 2017 23:05:51 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jun/17/hans-fallada-alone-in-berlin-stasi-spies-gestapo-filesPhotograph: Allstar/PATHE/X-FILME CREATIVE POOLPhotograph: Allstar/PATHE/X-FILME CREATIVE POOLPhilip Oltermann in Berlin2017-06-17T23:05:51ZMystery of Hampstead Heath squatter whose home inspired Hollywood romcomhttps://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/jun/10/hampstead-hermit-harry-hallowes-mystery-diane-keaton-brendan-gleeson
While the film about Harry Hallowes starring Brendan Gleeson and Diane Keaton is out this month, the fate of the patch he lived on is still unknown<p>It’s the feelgood film that promises to do for one of London’s best loved parklands what Richard Curtis’s romantic comedy did for Notting Hill.</p><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/03/hampstead-trailer-diane-keaton-brendan-gleeson" title=""><em>Hampstead</em>, starring Diane Keaton and Brendan Gleeson,</a> tells the tale of an American widow who falls for a hermit living on its famous heath. The film, which comes out on 23 June, is loosely based on the real-life story of the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/money/2007/may/24/property.communities" title="">late Harry Hallowes</a>, who lived in the ancient park for so many years that he was able to claim squatters’ rights to a tiny slice of it. But what will become of Hallowes’s patch of land – a stone’s throw from what promises to be one of Britain’s most expensive homes when it is completed – remains something of a mystery.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/jun/10/hampstead-hermit-harry-hallowes-mystery-diane-keaton-brendan-gleeson">Continue reading...</a>LondonLand rightsDiane KeatonBrendan GleesonCultureFilmConservationUK newsSat, 10 Jun 2017 19:30:40 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/jun/10/hampstead-hermit-harry-hallowes-mystery-diane-keaton-brendan-gleesonPhotograph: Nick WallPhotograph: Nick WallJamie Doward2017-06-10T19:30:40ZTrespass Against Us review – a voyage round father and sonhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/05/trespass-against-us-observer-film-review
<p>Brendan Gleeson and Michael Fassbender forge a convincing family dynamic in this otherwise inconsistent British drama set among the Traveller community</p><p>This British debut (the director previously worked in TV) has something of the oppressive threat of the similarly themed Australian drama <em>Animal Kingdom</em>. Both stories are set against the unpredictable outlaw backdrop of a crime dynasty; both explore the near impossibility of escaping from an environment that both supports and suffocates. But what sets <em>Trespass Against Us</em> apart is the fact that its milieu, the Traveller community, is one rarely seen outside Gypsy wedding-style TV series.</p><p>There are tonal inconsistencies – the ending in particular seems inappropriately wacky and absurd. But the tricky bond between Brendan Gleeson’s looming patriarch Colby Cutler, a personality so strong that he can – and does – convince his family that the world is flat, and his son Chad (Michael Fassbender) is nicely handled. Chad would prefer to raise his kids outside a world where crime is a career and an evening’s entertainment involves chucking pressurised containers on to a bonfire. But he knows that society is unlikely to welcome a semi-literate habitual thief into its midst.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/05/trespass-against-us-observer-film-review">Continue reading...</a>Drama filmsFilmBrendan GleesonMichael FassbenderCultureSun, 05 Mar 2017 08:00:38 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/05/trespass-against-us-observer-film-reviewPhotograph: Allstar/FILM4Photograph: Allstar/FILM4Wendy Ide2017-03-05T08:00:38ZHampstead: will filmgoers be flocking to the heath – or running for the hills?https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/03/hampstead-trailer-diane-keaton-brendan-gleeson
<p>There’s bereavement, bonding and a Hairy Biker lookalike in the trailer for Diane Keaton’s romcom, which threatens to ‘do a Notting Hill’ for leafy north London</p><p>It’s been almost two decades since Notting Hill became flooded with foreign tourists who do nothing but stand around in Notting Hill purely because someone once made a film called <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2014/mar/17/notting-hill-julia-roberts-richard-curtis-film-guilty-pleasure">Notting Hill</a>. And now, finally, someone has decided to send them somewhere else.<br></p><p>In June, a film called Hampstead will be released. Like Notting Hill, Hampstead is a geographically specific romcom. Like Notting Hill, it is likely to send visitors into a frenzy. And, like Notting Hill, it’s probably going to annoy the locals quite a lot. But does Hampstead really have what it takes to become the new Notting Hill? Let’s find out.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/03/hampstead-trailer-diane-keaton-brendan-gleeson">Continue reading...</a>FilmCultureBrendan GleesonDiane KeatonRomance filmsComedy filmsFri, 03 Mar 2017 14:38:33 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/03/hampstead-trailer-diane-keaton-brendan-gleesonPhotograph: Nick Wall/PR Company HandoutPhotograph: Nick Wall/PR Company HandoutStuart Heritage2017-03-03T14:38:33ZTrespass Against Us: another British gangster movie in which crime doesn’t pay offhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/feb/27/trespass-against-us-british-gangster-movie-michael-fassbender
<p>This father-son tale set in rural Britain lacks the twisted bite of its US counterparts and can’t decide what it’s really about</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/sep/10/trespass-against-us-review-even-fassbender-and-gleeson-cant-make-every-criminal-charming">Trespass Against Us review: even Fassbender and Gleeson can't make every criminal charming</a> </p><p>British crime movies have never been short of dysfunctional families. Think of the brothers in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/get-carter">Get Carter</a>, and how the survivor once impregnated his dead brother’s wife. Or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/sep/03/the-selling-of-the-krays-how-two-mediocre-criminals-created-their-own-legendlegends">the Kray twins</a> – be they Kemps or Hardys – the mentally ill brother taking the sane one down with him, come what may, and a wife driven to suicide by their toxic relationship. Or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/oct/25/ray-winstone-dont-mean-to-look-like-i-want-to-kill-people">Ray Winstone</a> in Face, a loving dad brought to grief by his daughter’s boyfriend, a bent Met copper.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/oct/22/michael-fassbender-worrywart-work-on-that">Michael Fassbender: ‘I was a bit of a worrywart. I’ve tried to work on that’</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/feb/27/trespass-against-us-british-gangster-movie-michael-fassbender">Continue reading...</a>FilmCultureMichael FassbenderBrendan GleesonMon, 27 Feb 2017 09:59:06 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/feb/27/trespass-against-us-british-gangster-movie-michael-fassbenderPhotograph: Allstar/FILM4Photograph: Allstar/FILM4John Patterson2017-02-27T09:59:06ZLive By Night review – too smooth by halfhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jan/15/live-by-night-review-ben-affleck-sienna-miller-dennis-lehane
<p>Ben Affleck paints too rosy a portrait of the prohibition era in his return to the work of Dennis Lehane</p><p>The writing of American novelist Dennis Lehane is particularly well suited to screen adaptation. His propulsive narratives, bullet-hole plot points and a knack for capturing the fractious banter of blue-collar Boston all combine into that rarest of assets: authenticity. It’s for this that Lehane tends to attract big-ticket directors hoping for prestige projects: Clint Eastwood (<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2004/jun/04/dvdreviews.shopping" title=""><em>Mystic River</em>, 2003</a>), Ben Affleck (<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/jun/08/drama" title=""><em>Gone Baby Gone</em></a>, 2007) and Martin Scorsese (<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/mar/14/shutter-island-review-philip-french" title=""><em>Shutter Island</em></a>, 2010).</p><p>But that crucial authenticity is missing from this newest adaptation of a Lehane novel. For his latest outing as a director, Affleck returns to Lehane’s work, this time the 1920s Boston and Florida-set gangster novel <em>Live By Night</em>. But there’s something too sanitised and synthetic about this picture. It feels like a facsimile of prohibition America, a Vegas casino recreation rather than the real thing, lacking the grit and spit and sawdust of a country hurtling into the Great Depression. This filters through into the music choices: Cuban&nbsp;salsa works well to capture the free-spirited swing of Florida, but there is too much generic musical mulch that adds little to the film.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jan/15/live-by-night-review-ben-affleck-sienna-miller-dennis-lehane">Continue reading...</a>Live by NightBen AffleckSienna MillerBrendan GleesonCrime filmsFilmCultureSun, 15 Jan 2017 08:00:10 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/jan/15/live-by-night-review-ben-affleck-sienna-miller-dennis-lehanePhotograph: Allstar/Warner BrosPhotograph: Allstar/Warner BrosWendy Ide2017-01-15T08:00:10ZRory Gleeson: 'Writing wrecks your head'https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jan/12/rory-gleeson-rockadoon-shore-writing-wrecks-your-head
<p>The author of debut novel Rockadoon Shore talks about wanting to write like Richard Linklater directs, and visions of old English teachers berating him for his efforts</p><p>Telling Rory Gleeson his characters are awful makes him smile. That’s a good thing: in his debut novel Rockadoon Shore, his cast of self-obsessed twentysomethings are possibly the worst bunch of people I’ve ever met. And I have met them, too many times; their awfulness does not stem from lurid villainy, but from far more conventional motivations like insecurity, sexual frustration, small knocks and humiliations. We’ve all probably met them.</p><p>Set in a tiny cabin in the Irish countryside, Gleeson’s claustrophobic story follows Cath, the mother hen, who can irritate as much as she comforts; DanDan, who initially seems fine while grieving a dead ex – until he gets over it; Lucy, who is constantly performing for, mostly male attention; the beautiful Steph, who treats men appallingly; Merc, the Irish version of an American fratboy who has traded in muscles for personality; and JJ, that guy who brings MDMA to a cottage getaway. But Gleeson’s very well written debut is fresh in its unpredictability: not one of these characters does what you think they going to do.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/oct/17/new-irish-literary-boom-post-crash-stars-fiction">A new Irish literary boom: the post-crash stars of fiction</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jan/12/rory-gleeson-rockadoon-shore-writing-wrecks-your-head">Continue reading...</a>BooksCultureBrendan GleesonIrelandFictionThu, 12 Jan 2017 17:08:56 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jan/12/rory-gleeson-rockadoon-shore-writing-wrecks-your-headPhotograph: Sean BerriganPhotograph: Sean BerriganSian Cain2017-01-12T17:08:56ZBrendan Gleeson: ‘My guiltiest pleasure? Fridge-foraging before bed’https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/dec/31/brendan-gleeson-q-and-a-interview
<p>The actor on the disappointment of puberty, tickling and why a bidet would change his life</p><p>Born in Dublin, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/brendan-gleeson">Brendan Gleeson</a>, 61, worked as a teacher and was a part-time stage actor until, at 34, he appeared in&nbsp;Mel Gibson’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/jul/30/3">Braveheart</a>. His subsequent work includes <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2003/jan/10/artsfeatures2">Gangs Of New York</a>, three <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/harrypotter">Harry Potter films</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/apr/18/drama.thriller">In Bruges</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/apr/10/calvary-review-gleeson-mcdonagh-peter-bradshaw-film-of-the-week">Calvary</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/oct/07/suffragette-review-votes-women-carey-mulligan-abi-morgan-bonham-carter">Suffragette</a>; his latest film, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2016/may/12/assassins-creed-trailer-analysis-michael-fassbender">Assassin’s Creed</a>, is released tomorrow. He lives in Ireland and is married with four sons.</p><p><strong>When were you happiest?</strong><br>It’s ongoing.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/sep/17/elaine-paige-interview-actor-singer-evita-cats">Elaine Paige: ‘Every lead role I went for up until Evita I didn’t get’</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/dec/31/brendan-gleeson-q-and-a-interview">Continue reading...</a>Brendan GleesonFilmCultureLife and styleSat, 31 Dec 2016 09:30:24 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/dec/31/brendan-gleeson-q-and-a-interviewPhotograph: Scott Garfitt/REX/ShutterstockPhotograph: Scott Garfitt/REX/ShutterstockRosanna Greenstreet2016-12-31T09:30:24ZTrespass Against Us review: even Fassbender and Gleeson can't make every criminal charminghttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/sep/10/trespass-against-us-review-even-fassbender-and-gleeson-cant-make-every-criminal-charming
<p>Adam Smith’s debut film could be an evocative slice of life about Irish travellers in the west country – in fact it’s an indulgent, arm’s-length muddle that fails to convince you its leading men are sympathetic </p><p>The suspension of disbelief is key to watching films, but at some point you have to have to put your foot down. No one as beautiful as Michael Fassbender would be living in such squalor.</p><p>In Trespass Among Us, Fassbender plays Chad Cutler, the second generation in a small band of Irish travellers living somewhere in the west country. He’s the only one in the group who wears a collared shirt (hell, some hardly wear clothes at all) and his is the trailer with plastic covering over the couch cushions. His father, Colby (Brendan Gleeson), loves nothing more than telling tall tales around the campfire, making flat-Earth arguments and reminding his grandchildren not to believe anything they learn at school.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/sep/10/trespass-against-us-review-even-fassbender-and-gleeson-cant-make-every-criminal-charming">Continue reading...</a>Toronto film festival 2016FilmCultureToronto film festivalMichael FassbenderBrendan GleesonSat, 10 Sep 2016 08:32:09 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/sep/10/trespass-against-us-review-even-fassbender-and-gleeson-cant-make-every-criminal-charmingPhotograph: PR Company HandoutPhotograph: PR Company HandoutJordan Hoffman2016-09-10T08:32:09ZEmma Thompson: UK would be 'mad not to' stay in EUhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/feb/15/emma-thompson-uk-would-be-mad-not-to-stay-in-eu
<p>Alone in Berlin actor says she ‘feels European’, and that she would definitely vote to remain in Europe in the referendum</p><p>Emma Thompson called for Britain to stay in the European Union, saying the UK would be “mad not to”. Describing Britain as “a tiny little cloud-bolted, rainy corner of sort-of Europe, a cake-filled misery-laden grey old island”, Thompson said she “just felt European” and would “of course” vote to remain in the EU in the upcoming referendum. “We should be taking down borders, not putting them up.”</p><p>Thompson was speaking at a press conference in Berlin for the world premiere of Alone in Berlin, the screen adaptation of Hans Fallada’s 1947 novel about a German act of resistance to the Nazis in wartime Berlin. She plays Anna Quangel who, with her husband Otto (played by Brendan Gleeson), distributes anonymous handwritten postcards containing anti-Nazi messages around the city. Based on the real-life case of Otto and Elise Hampel, Alone in Berlin was republished in an English-language translation in 2009 and became a bestselling book in the UK and US. The new film, directed by Vincent Pérez, is also in English.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/feb/15/emma-thompson-uk-would-be-mad-not-to-stay-in-eu">Continue reading...</a>Berlin film festival 2016FilmEmma ThompsonBrexitEuropean UnionEuropeCultureForeign policyPoliticsUK newsWorld newsBerlin film festivalFestivalsFilm adaptationsBrendan GleesonHans FalladaBooksMon, 15 Feb 2016 23:23:57 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/feb/15/emma-thompson-uk-would-be-mad-not-to-stay-in-euPhotograph: John Macdougall/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: John Macdougall/AFP/Getty ImagesAndrew Pulver2016-02-15T23:23:57ZAlone in Berlin review - postcard revolution in the heart of Nazi Germanyhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/feb/15/alone-in-berlin-review-film-festival-nazi-germany-emma-thompson
<p>Brendan Gleeson and Emma Thompson are the married couple who spread wartime subversion in this decently-intended adaptation of Hans Fallada’s novel</p><p>In 2009 a new English-language translation of Hans Fallada’s 1947 novel about small-scale, low-key resistance to the Nazi regime in wartime Berlin turned into an unexpected commercial success. And so here we have, inevitably, a handsome if not unduly demanding big-screen adaptation, directed by Vincent Pérez (still best known as an actor, although this is his third feature credit as director), and starring Brendan Gleeson and Emma Thompson as the Quangels, the dour, unhappy couple who channel their misery at the death of their son into their small acts of subversion.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/jan/11/alone-in-berlin-morally-compromised">Letters: Alone in Berlin is morally compromised</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/feb/15/alone-in-berlin-review-film-festival-nazi-germany-emma-thompson">Continue reading...</a>Berlin film festival 2016Berlin film festivalBrendan GleesonEmma ThompsonDaniel BrühlFilm adaptationsHans FalladaBooksCultureFestivalsFilmGermanyWar filmsEuropeWorld newsMon, 15 Feb 2016 19:00:22 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/feb/15/alone-in-berlin-review-film-festival-nazi-germany-emma-thompsonPhotograph: Marcel Hartman/X FilmePhotograph: Marcel Hartman/X FilmeAndrew Pulver2016-02-15T19:00:22ZTen to watch at the Berlin film festival 2016https://www.theguardian.com/film/gallery/2016/feb/09/10-to-watch-berlin-film-festival-2016
<p>From Danish communes to druggy cops, Bosnian strikers to bolshy New Zealand shepherds, the 66th Berlin film festival – which starts this week – promises to serve up riveting drama from celebrated directors and performers. Here are some of the films we are most looking forward to</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/gallery/2016/feb/09/10-to-watch-berlin-film-festival-2016">Continue reading...</a>Berlin film festival 2016FilmCultureFestivalsBerlin film festivalWorld cinemaFilm adaptationsThomas VinterbergJohn Michael McDonaghSteve CooganTerence DaviesEmily DickinsonHans FalladaBrendan GleesonBooksMichael GrandageStuxnetDrama filmsTue, 09 Feb 2016 12:56:07 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/gallery/2016/feb/09/10-to-watch-berlin-film-festival-2016Photograph: HENRIK PETIT / BERLINALE / HANDOUT/EPAPhotograph: HENRIK PETIT / BERLINALE / HANDOUT/EPAHenry Barnes2016-02-09T12:56:07ZIn the Heart of the Sea review – Apollo 13 with scurvy and beardshttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/17/in-the-heart-of-the-sea-review-ron-howard-chris-hemsworth
<p>Ron Howard engagingly reworks the story that inspired Moby-Dick, with Chris Hemsworth and Cillian Murphy among a band of shipwrecked sailors<br></p><p>They’re going to need a bigger boat – or a smaller obsession. Ron Howard’s new movie is an entertaining maritime yarn from the 19th century, all about a doomed voyage: like <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/apr/17/apollo-13-tom-hanks-space-ron-howard">Apollo 13</a> only with more scurvy and beards. Howard is a director who believes in strong, primary-colour storytelling, with plenty of uncomplicated emotion. Yet this story is oddly more subtle than you might think, giving an unexpected oblique sidelight into the psychological origin of American literature’s greatest mythic monster. It re-imagines the true story that partly inspired Herman Melville’s great novel <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jan/13/100-best-novels-observer-moby-dick">Moby-Dick</a>, though English teachers the world over will be pained to see this film do without the hyphen. A Massachusetts whaling ship, The Essex, sank in 1820 leaving a handful of crew adrift on open boats; they said the disaster was caused by getting rammed by a monstrously large sperm whale, with a serious grudge against homo sapiens.</p><p>A first-hand history of this nightmare was published afterwards by the first mate, Owen Chase, played here by <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jun/11/chris-hemsworth-to-play-receptionist-in-all-female-ghostbusters">Chris Hemsworth</a>. There was also a second manuscript account from the ship’s former cabin boy Thomas Nickerson, that only surfaced long afterwards. This formed the basis of the 2000 non-fiction book on which this movie has been based: <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2000/jul/19/firstchapters.reviews">Nathaniel Philbrick’s In the Heart of the Sea</a>, adapted by Charles Leavitt. The movie imagines Melville himself, played by Ben Whishaw, coming to visit the ageing Nickerson, intent on getting the terrible story from him personally. Nickerson is played by Brendan Gleeson as a careworn adult, and as pink-cheeked 14-year-old in flashback by Tom Holland.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/17/in-the-heart-of-the-sea-review-ron-howard-chris-hemsworth">Continue reading...</a>Drama filmsFilmCultureRon HowardCillian MurphyBrendan GleesonChris HemsworthTom HollandThu, 17 Dec 2015 15:30:13 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/17/in-the-heart-of-the-sea-review-ron-howard-chris-hemsworthPhotograph: Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures/Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.Photograph: Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures/Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.Peter Bradshaw2015-12-17T15:30:13ZEx Machina triumphs at British independent film awardshttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/07/ex-machina-wins-at-british-independent-film-awards
<p>The sci-fi thriller wins four awards, including best British independent film, while Saoirse Ronan and Tom Hardy take home acting prizes</p><p>Science fiction thriller Ex Machina was a surprise winner at the British independent film awards, winning best British independent film and three other prizes.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jan/22/ex-machina-review">Ex Machina review – elegant but limited artificial intelligence thriller</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/07/ex-machina-wins-at-british-independent-film-awards">Continue reading...</a>Ex MachinaFilmCultureTom HardyLegendAwards and prizesOlivia ColmanBrendan GleesonSuffragetteThe LobsterMon, 07 Dec 2015 11:48:23 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/dec/07/ex-machina-wins-at-british-independent-film-awardsPhotograph: Publicity image from film companyPhotograph: Publicity image from film companyBenjamin Lee2015-12-07T11:48:23ZSuffragette to open this year's London film festivalhttps://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jun/03/suffragette-to-open-2015-london-film-festival-carey-mulligan-meryl-streep
<p>Carey Mulligan stars alongside Meryl Streep in drama about the suffragrettes who fought for women’s right to vote</p><p>Suffragette, the first feature film to tell the story of women’s fight for the vote, will kick off this year’s <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/film/londonfilmfestival">London film festival</a> (LFF). Starring <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/film/carey-mulligan">Carey Mulligan</a>, the film tells the story of the working-class British women who, inspired by the suffragette leader, Emmeline Pankhurst, took their fight for enfranchisement to the male establishment in Westminster.</p><p>Mulligan plays Maud, a housewife who defies her husband (<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/culture/ben-whishaw">Ben Whishaw</a>) and risks losing custody of her children in the struggle for universal suffrage. Meryl Streep plays Pankhurst, the co-founder of the Women’s Social and Political Union, who undertook hunger strikes and advocated property destruction as a means of protest. </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jun/03/suffragette-to-open-2015-london-film-festival-carey-mulligan-meryl-streep">Continue reading...</a>SuffragetteCultureFilmDrama filmsBiopicsCarey MulliganMeryl StreepBen WhishawHelena Bonham CarterBrendan GleesonLondon film festivalFestivalsWomenLondon film festival 2010Wed, 03 Jun 2015 14:16:15 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jun/03/suffragette-to-open-2015-london-film-festival-carey-mulligan-meryl-streepPhotograph: PRPhotograph: PRHenry Barnes2015-06-03T14:16:15Z